CMS has fielded the MA (Consumer Assessment of Health Care Providers and Systems) CAHPS Survey annually since 1998, the Medicare FFS CAHPS Survey annually since 2000, and the MA DP and Stand Alone PDP CAHPS survey annually since 2006. The Medicare CAHPS is a national survey of health and prescription drug plans conducted at the contract level for MA, MA PD and Stand Alone PDP plans and at the state level for Medicare fee-for-service. Medicare CAHPS provides data to permit preparation of plan performance measures to assist Medicare beneficiaries in their selection of a health and/or prescription drug plan and help policymakers and others assist the Medicare program and Medicare plans design and monitor patient-centered quality improvement initiatives. The 2009 Call letter for MA and MA PD plans requires these plans to contract with private vendors from a list selected by CMS to conduct the 2011 Medicare CAHPS survey for their plan at the contract level and provide the collected data to CMS for analyses and preparation of CAHPS measures for use in consumer and plan reports and for quality improvement purposes for MA, MA PD, and Stand Alone PDP plans. CMS will continue to collect the Medicare FFS CAHPS data from surveys at the state and some sub-state levels. This revision to a currently approved collection is to add questions focusing on care coordination. The Medicare CAHPS survey has taken the OMB No. 0935-0732.
Due to a reduction in survey content, the burden to Medicare beneficiaries to complete a CAHPS survey has gone down: MA burden is 0.25 hour and the stand-alone PDP and FFS survey burdens are 0.17 and 0.25 hours, respectively. Compared to prior survey burden of 0.4 for MA, 0.25 for stand-along PDP, and 0.3 for FFS. The overall burden has been reduced by 85,627 hours. Changes to the survey content are demonstrated in the respective Crosswalks which are attached to this package.
The burden to MA and PDP contracts has been moved from Supporting Statement section 12 (Burden Estimates) to its proper place in section 13 (Capital Costs). The cost per contract has not changed from the currently approved estimate. However, because Capital Costs are not added to the ROCIS burden table, this change adjusts our burden estimate by minus 32,346 hr and $2,995,000.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.
Form CMS-R-246 Medicare Advantage (MA) Survey
MCAHPS - Crosswalk 2017 - 032718 CLEAN.xlsx
CMS-R-246 - Supporting Statement A - Passback2 - 032218 CLEAN.docx
Medicare Advantage (MA) Survey